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Opinion National Interest PoV 50-Word Edit

ThePrint On Camera Videos In Pictures

Society & Culture Around Town Book Excerpts Vigyapanti The Dating Story

More Judiciary Education YourTurn Work With Us Campus Voice

Lodhi Garden’s immigrant hornbill has a new name—Mausi Ma

The interspecies engagement in Delhi’s Lodhi Garden stunned scientists and nature lovers globally. In a collective moment, the pied hornbill was named Mausi Ma.

The Mausi Ma Hornbill series, first reported on 12 May, is coming to a close. In an earlier column, I wrote about the mysterious Oriental pied hornbill, or OPH, in Delhi’s Lodhi Garden. The bird is usually found in the Terai area. She—it was a female bird—aggressively took over feeding and nurturing at multiple nests of Indian grey hornbills, chasing away the parents. Such inter-species engagement stunned scientists and nature lovers globally. In a collective moment, the OPH was anthropomorphically named Mausi Ma. 

Birders, including me, have stayed focused primarily on three nests—all holes in the trunks of tall trees. When hatching her one or more eggs, a female hornbill seals herself inside the chosen hole, moulting in the process. The male feeds her through a narrow slit in the mud seal. When the hatched chick is old enough to be left alone, the mother breaks the seal and steps out. Then, she also feeds the chick. About 40 days after the mother leaves, the chick almost tumbles out of the nest. Many fall on the ground, or on branches or bushes nearby.

What would........

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